Milos Raonic believes he is reaping the benefits of changing his coach midway through the season.
The big-serving 22-year-old Canadian made a poor start to 2013 but still has a chance to qualify for the end-of-season ATP World Tour Finals after parting ways with long-time coach, Galo Blanco, in May and replacing him with the former world number three, Ivan Ljubicic.
“I felt like when I made the decision, I was convinced it was the right one,” said the current world number 11 Raonic.
“The approach has always been, when you’re going to do something, believe in it and go 100 per cent. That’s really what it came down to. It was just a little bit tough because it was in the middle of the season, just before two Grand Slams.”
“I think in general, everything’s turned out well. I can’t complain. I feel like I’m playing much better and like I’m playing some of my best tennis now. I feel like I’m getting better every day, so I’m very happy with that.”
The improvement in Raonic’s results since he appointed the 34-year-old Croatian Ljubicic, whose best result at a Grand Slam came in the 2006 French Open when he reached the semi-finals, have been well-documented on the betfair website.
He moved into the world’s top ten when he reached the final of the Rogers Cup in Montreal, where he was beaten by Rafael Nadal, before being edged out in a five-set thrilled by Richard Gasquet in the fourth round of the US Open.
He won his second title of the season at the Thailand Open in Bangkok, beating Tomas Berdych in the final. Raonic had earlier in the year triumphed at the SAP Open in San Jose for the third successive time, beating Tommy Haas in the final.
